Recent rumors suggest that Europe could get the Wii U, Nintendo's next generation gaming console, in December rather than November as previously expected. Australia could also see a Wii U release during the final month of 2012. Manufacturing issues were cited as the cause of the delay.

Kotaku Australia reported the country's release rumor. An anonymous tip from "a local Australian retailer" claims that December 6 is the Wii U release date. Also, Nintendo is guaranteeing that every pre-order at EB Games -- perhaps the aforementioned Australian retailer -- will be met. Nintendo saw shortages of the Wii during the console's release in 2006.

Kotaku added that December 6 is a Thursday, the traditional day for releasing gaming software and hardware in Australia. Wii was released on December 7, 2006 - a Thursday.

"According to a GameStop employee, the Wii U is set for release during Thanksgiving weekend in the US," revealed Kotaku. Thanksgiving weekend begins on November 22, and the "Black Friday" holiday sales begin the following day. Launching 2 weeks after the U.S. is "the kind of delay Australians are used to with Nintendo's hardware releases," Kotaku explained.

Gaming website ComputerAndVideoGames (CVG) recently suggested that Europe could see a launch delay to December 2012, following manufacturing issues for the Wii U GamePad. CVG simply described the issue as "complex".

The GamePad is a tablet-esque device for Wii U, with a single-touch display. It allows users to play games away from the television, though the extent is unconfirmed, and also serves as a controller. Near Field Communication integration also allows interaction with games, including throwing shurikens towards the TV screen.

The GamePad uses a similar feature set to the iPad, so it may seem strange to consumers that Nintendo is facing issues, considering that Apple produces millions of iPads across 3 models every month.

Nintendo announced Wii at E3 2005, with the Wii Remote unveiled in September of that year. If Nintendo does follow similar announcement schedules (it showed Wii U at E3 2012 in June) less than a month could remain until a Wii U announcement. Nintendo has not confirmed a price or a specific release date.